Typewriting machine



v Feb. 9, 1937. w. F. HELMOND 2,069,829

TYPEWRITING MACHINE Filed Nov. 28, 1934 mmm,

Patented Feb. 9, 1937 UNITED STATES 2,069,829 TYPEWRITING MACHINE William F. Helmond, West Hartford, Conn., as-

signor to Underwood Elliott Fisher Company, New York, N. Y., a corporation of Delaware Application November 28, 1934, Serial No. 755,110

2 Claims.

This invention relates to the finger-struck keyheads of a typewriter-keyboard or the like; and provides a finger-cushioning key-head constructed, and mounted on its key-stem or key-lever, so as to be capable of yielding universally when engaged by the finger, thereby to gain a fingercushioning effect whichconduces greatly to ease of operating the keyboard.

The invention further aims to provide the novel key-head in a durable and compact form which may be manufactured inexpensively, may be attached inexpensively, securely and neatly, to the key-lever; and, further, so that the novel keyhead, even though its finger-cushioning quality is greatly increased, need not be of greater overall diameter, or may even be of less diameter, than the regular rigid key-head, in order to minimize the liability of striking two keys simultaneously.

The novel key-head is made preferably of soft cushioning rubber.

In order that the finger-struck top portion of the key-head may yield universally, that is, be capable of yielding locally for the requisite cushioning effect at whatever part of its top surface it is struck by the finger, and moreover be capable of yielding in directions transverse to the vertical, so that transverse components of finger strokes are also efiectively cushioned, said top portion is of shallow depth and surmounts a reduced neck that is also shallow, and preferably hollow by reason of being made of annular form.

Fastening means for securing the novel keyhead to the head-receiving seat of the rigid keyshank engage the key-head only at a base-portion which is also shallow and is surmounted by said neck, so that the finger-struck top portion of the key-head is spaced from said fastening means. Said shallow neck thus acts as a resilient, universally yieldable support for the finger-struck top portion of the key-head to conduce to the finger-cushioning quality of said top portion.

The hollow neck is reduced, that is, made smaller in outer diameter than the finger-struck top portion of the key-head, to the further end that the edge or rim of said shallow top portion is in the form of an outwardly-extending flange or lip, and is therefore free to yield and flex locally of itself to conduce to the cushioning of the finger stroke.

Since the hollow neck is itself resiliently compressible, it will yield to permit, and conform to, whatever vertical localized yielding and resultant flexing of the button-like top portion of the keyhead take place to cushion the finger impact.

The reduced hollow neck is also sufiiciently tractable to yield transversely, to permit, and conform to, whatever transverse yielding of the top portion of the key-head is necessary to cushion the finger stroke.

The central section of the top portion of the 5 shallow neck hollow inasmuch as it may extend from the bottom of the base-portion.

For attaching and securing the novel-head to the rigid key-shank, the base-portion, separated from the top portion by the neck may be en- 16 larged relatively to said neck to afford an outer flange or shoulder against the top of which suitable fastening means may be drawn to secure the key-head to the rigid key-shank; said fastening means engaging only said base-portion, in order to leave the top portion of the key-head free to yield universally. Said key-shank is provided with a seat against which the base-portion is drawn by said fastening means. Said fastening "means may be arranged so as not to interfere 25 with the described universal yielding of the fingerstruck top portion of the key-head and the underlying reduced hollow neck.

Other features and advantages will hereinafter appear.

In the accompanying drawing,

Figure 1 is a side view showing the novel keyhead and the manner of mounting and securing same to the key-lever.

Figure 2 is a side view showing the key-head, 35 its seat on the key-shank, and the fastening means in section. The view also illustrates how the key-head yields not only downwardly, but also transverselyQto efi'ectively cushion the finger when the latter strikes the key-head eccentri- 40 cally.

Figure 3 is a front view of the key-lever and novel key-head; the seat and fastening means being shown in section toillustrate details.

Figure 4 is a section view showing the novel 45 key-head as being formed with a concave finger surface.

' tallied.

The key-head-seating plate 8 has a tubular trunk 5 into which the upper end 6 of the -key-,

shank 2 may be forcibly driven, for permanently securing said plate 8 to the key-lever I.

The finger-cushioning key-head 4 is preferably made of soft rubber, and includes a disk-like, that is, shallow button-like, top portion I, the top surface of which is struck by the finger.

In order to gain universal yieldability of the finger-struck top portion I, and thereby improve the finger-cushioning quality of the key-head 4, said top portion I surmounts a neck 8. The bottom of said key-head rests directly upon the keyhead-mounting plate 3, and means for fastening the key-head to the key-lever I are arranged to engage said key-head only at the base of said keyhead neck 8, in order that said neck 8 may yield universally to conduce to said universal yieldability of the finger-struck top portion "I.

To provide for such fastening of the key-head, the base-portion of the key-head may be enlarged outwardly from the neck 8 to form a flange which affords a shoulder 9 to which key-headfastening means may be applied. Said shouldered base-portion fits within an upturned edge portion or rim III of the key-head-mounting plate 8, said rim l thus co-operating to retain the key-head transversely upon key-seating plate 3.

The outer periphery of said upturned 'platerim Ill may also centralize a surrounding, preferably separate, key-head-fastening ferrule or ring II. Said ring II is turned inwardly at its top, as

at I2, to overtop the key-head shoulder 8 for retaining the key-head upon the plate 3, and to this end said ring II is also turned inwardly at its bottom, as at I 3, to react against the under side of the edge of the plate 3.

The neck 8 is made of annular section for the purpose of enabling it to yield readily, and thereby conduce to the universal yieldability of the finger-struck top portion I. Furthermore, making the neck 8 of annular section also forms a recess l4 under the central section l of the finger-struck top portion I, so that said central section is of sufficient thinness to conduce to the finger-cushioning yieldability locally of said top portion I.

To further conduce to the universal yieldability of the finger-struck top portion I, the underlying neck 8 is of smaller outer diameter than said top portion 1, thereby forming a free and therefore readily yieldable outer rim section or lip I8 for said top portion.

The neck I extends above the shoulder 9 far enough to separate the under side II of said free lip I6 of the top portion from the top I2 of the fastening ferrule II by a space I8, Figures 1. and 3, said space I8 being sufflcient to permit ade- Figure 2 illustrates how the key-head may yield, by reason of its novel construction and mounting, to effectively cushion a finger stroke v of the top portion whichtake place substantially quate downward yielding of said free lip or flange as shown in said Figure 2. The compressedportion of the neck 8 will also yield forwardly, mostly at its upper unfastened part above the ring I I,

cushion a finger stroke that strikes the key-head substantially squarely at about the'middle of its top. In such case the annular neck 8 will be compressed, substantially uniformly all around, and will be flexed somewhat inwardly at the top to permit, and conform to, the finger-cushioning yielding and resultant flexing of the top portion I which take place substantially as shown in Figure 5, in which the dotted outline 1 indicates the normal condition of the key-head- It will be seen that the capability for free and varying yielding and flexing of the top portion- I as exemplified by Figures 2 and 5, and the resultant improved cushioning quality of the key-head are gained by the use of the described combina-- ability of the top portion, I. It will be evident that the improved key-head is compact vertically and need be of no greater diameter than the regular rigid key-head, and may even be of less diameter, in order to minimize the liability of striking two keys of the keyboard simultaneously.

The key-head may be inexpensively molded from soft rubber. The appropriate key-character I9 may be marked in any suitable way upon the top finger surface of the key-head.

In the preferred and illustrated form of the key-head-retaining ring II, the inwardly-turned top portion I2 of the latter is in the form of an inwardly-turned flange extending all around the ring. The key-head, being of soft rubber, may be compressed to pass the shoulder-forming enlargement at the base of thekey-head through the central opening afforded by said inwardly-turned flange I2 of the ring. The inwardly-turned bottom portion II of the key-'head-fastening ring II is preferably in the form of individual prongs, as indicated in Figure 6 at I3. Said prongs ll are initially straight, that is, they extend directly downward from the ring-portion II.

In assembling the parts, the soft rubber keyhead is first inserted into the ring I I, I2, and the key-head and'its said ring II, I2 are then'placed upon the key-plate 3, with the ring II encircling the upturned rim I0 of said plate. The prongs Irof the ring are then bent inwardly against the under side of the edge of the plate 8 in such manner as to enable the ring II, I2 to keep the bottom of the key-head against the top surface of the seat fillet 8, and the shallow ase-portiondema'rcated by the shoulder 9; and that the shallow neck portion or fillet 8 is sufiiciently compressible and tractable to conduce to universal yieldability of said top portion I. Said neck 8, because of its shallowness, is in the nature of a fillet, and is therefore in congruence, for the purpose of the invention, with the shallow top portion 7 and shallow base-portion. Because of its compact proportions, the novel key-head 4 is substantially approximate to the proportions of the conventional rigid typewriter key-head structure, and therefore fulfills an important desideratum.

Variations may be resorted to within the scope of the invention and portions of the improvements may be used without others.

Having thus described my invention, I claim:

1. In combination with a typewriter-key stem, 8. key cup mounted directly thereon, and retaining means associated with said key cup; a finger cushioning key-head of resilient material comprising a base member adapted to fit within the confines of said key cup, an annular recess in said head above said base, forming a base shoulder and a shallow neck in the nature of a fillet, said retaining means extending into said recess in engagement with said shoulder, a shallow top portion overlying the recess in spaced relation from said base to afford a flexible border rim, the diameter of said top portion being substantially the same as that of said key cup and retaining means, to provide a vertically and diametrically compact keyhead.

2. In combination with a typewriter-key stem,

a key cup mounted directly thereon, and retaining means associated with said key cup; a finger cushioning key-head of resilient material comprising a base member adapted to fit within the confines of said key cup, an annular recess in said head above said base, forming a base shoulder and a shallow neck in the nature of a fillet, said retaining means extending into said recess in engagement with said shoulder, a shallow top portion overlying the recess inspaced relation from said base to afford a flexible border rim, the diameter of said top portion being substantially the same as that of said key cup and retaining means, a central recess in said key-head extending from the underside of said base portion and through said neck, to thin the central section of said top portion, thereby providing a vertically and diametrically compact key-head of universal fingercushioning yieldability.

WILLIAM F. HELMOND. 

